Senses
by BluSakura
Summary: Light cannot exist without dark. A short little drabble concluding the battle with Sephiroth. CloTi


_Disclaimer: I don't own squat._

_A/N: I've been playing Kingdom Hearts for who knows how long and I can't believe I never made a fanfiction about it. When I got KH2, I was ecstatic that Tifa was finally there, so I promised myself I'd make a fic just for her._

_Then I looked at all the fanfiction about Tifa and what do I find? **No CloTi fics! **I only found, like, three in the whole fandom._

_So, it may not be good, but I want to do my part to keep the CloTi fandom up in Kingdom Hearts 2! Just a tiny drabble dedicated to my favorite couple in Final Fantasy VII. _

_It might have some references to Final Fantasy VII (namely reference to the bar, though its just mentioned a little), but this has no connection to that game. _

_If you support this couple, please review or write a fiction! **CloTi forever!**_

**_&&&_**

Cloud gazed down at the shattered Masamune on the stone ground below him.

His chest heaved up and down as he attempted to bring much needed oxygen back into his lungs. He licked his dry, cracked lips to soothe the sting he felt at the corners of his mouth. The thin gash on his fair-skinned cheek throbbed, but not nearly as much as the deep wound on his upper back. His legs were aching and worn and he resisted the urge to collapse on the floor. His bruised and tired arms let the Murasame fall to the ground. Cloud barely heard the bang it made on the gravel below.

He fell to his knees in front of Sephiroth's broken sword. The gleam on the blade was dull and the shimmer it used to have vanished. It no longer threatened any life at all. The handle was rough and the elegance it had was diminished.

The darkness was still there, and he knew it, too. But it was okay. Light cannot exist without dark.

It took him 7 days to finally destroy the embodiment of his own shadows. He counted every minute while struggling with Sephiroth.

He thought about it for a while during the battle. His movements became almost a reflex as he, in a way, went into autopilot for a while. He was no longer fighting Sephiroth. He was fighting himself. Not the incarnation of his shadows, but the darkness inside.

On the final day of the encounter, the two soldiers found the other a few yards away staring the other down. Cloud was bruised, wounded, and exhausted. Sephiroth smirked in satisfaction.

"It's over, Cloud. You're light can _never _reach you."

Cloud fought to retain his breath. He would _not _allow Sephiroth, _the darkness_, to take over his life.

If not for himself, then for _her._

As the thought of the brunette, ruby-eyed beauty crossed his mind, a white flash appeared before his eyes once more, blinding him with the immense vividness. Trying to blink away the spots in his eyes, Cloud found himself distracted by her image. Even as the light dissipated, her smile still remained.

And he saw things clearer than he ever had before.

In a split-second, Sephiroth leaped into the air, his wind extended, the Masamune poised above his head, ready to strike over the dazed Cloud.

As Sephiroth descended down, eyes trained on the spellbound man, everything stopped.

The last thing the manifestation of darkness saw, before he was expelled away from the living, mystified him even on his way down to the Underworld.

It was Cloud's serene expression.

And Sephiroth's body met the tip of the Murasame.

The darkness remained even then when Cloud was on his knees, staring down at the shards of the once great blade. But he didn't mind. Along with the darkness, there was also her smile.

Before he passed out, he felt gentle arms caress his fatigued muscles. He smelled the scent of the sweet wine she always served. He heard her voice singing a soft lullaby that she learned from her mother. He saw her dazzling smile, the same one that plagued his every thought. And he tasted her sweet cherry lips.

"Go to sleep, Cloud. I'm taking you home now."

Then it all went black.

No. White.

**_&&&_**

_BluSakura: And there you have it, folks! CloTi forever!_

_(trips on a banana peel on her way out)_


End file.
